Are pit bulls as bad as they are portrayed in the media?

Question

A friend of mine just got a 8 month old pit bull puppy and she has a 5 month old daughter. I'm concerned about this because of all the negative publicity they get. She says i'm overreacting. Am i really?

Answer 1

It's the "big bad wolf" syndrome. They are like any other dogs, they react to how they are treated. If you are nice and treat them with respect, they are wonderful dogs. If you are cruel or train them to be vicious, they will be. Pit Bull Terriers have gotten a bad reputation because they are used for fighting. This has nothing to do, really, with any inherent aggressiveness in the breed (at least, not initially) but with superior jaw strength. An adult Pit Bull Terrier can exert 180lbs. of pressure per square inch, easily breaking bones if they bite somebody. Now they are often bred to be aggressive, so you do have to watch who you get your dog from. Too much line breeding (also known as "inbreeding") can cause unfavourable results in temperament. You are over-reacting but it is only because you love her child and her. If the dog is raised with them and raised with the baby, there should be no problem.

Answer 2

Yes you do not need to be concerned as long as your friend is training the dog correctly. The pitbulls you hear about are beat and trained to be violent.

All dogs are protective of there owners regardless of breed.

I have now a 13 year old pitbull mutt (Roxy). When we first got her she had been in the shelter and had to be 1 1/2 yrs old. She was very scared at everything and did not like people. I then became pregnant and everyone said we should get rid of the dog shes a pitbull shes gonna do this & that. She was scared when the baby came home i let her smell the baby i DID NOT ignore the dog for "the new baby" and she quickly became attached to the baby. Well my son is seven and the dog is 13 and they are the best of friends. However my son was playing in the yard and a strange man walked by Roxy became the angry pitbull you hear stories about and this was only because she was protecting my son. If the puppy is raised correctly and with the baby your friend has actually done the best thing by creating a protector for her child. Ask a real vet its not the breed, 90% of the time its the owners treating the dogs incorrectly

Answer 3

Pit bulls are very friendly dogs unless they are treated bad or trained to be mean. My brother had a pit and his 3 kids grew up with the dog, they just recently had to put him down at 14 yr. old because he could no longer walk, the kids were heart broken. So now they rescued a lovely Pit cross puppy.

I have a friend that has a Pit and a little Shih-tzu, the Shih-tzu was there first and bosses the Pit around.......hehehe

I have another friend that has a Pit Bull and a Springer Spaniel, you can't go near the Springer because he is very aggressive and will bite, but her Pit Bull is lovely and very friendly.

Answer 4

If the pup is from good parents you shouldn't worry. They are not what the media claims. If the dog is not bred from fighting dogs and is well socialized and trained it is the most loving of pets. There is more danger of it squishing and drowning you by sitting in your lap and licking your face than danger of it biting you. The pups from dogs bred to fight have a chance of being dog-agressive and have unstable temperaments. Anyone that tells you differently has never watched pit bull rescue pups at play while their temperament is evaluated to see if they can be adopted. The reason they are so wrongly portrayed in the media is that they have the physical strength to do severe damage. I've known small dogs that were far more prone to biting than any pit bull. The funny (and sad) thing is - you will never read in the papers about how a chihuahua savaged its 6 foot tall, 200 lb. owner to death and had to be put down by police to stop the rampage. It sells more papers to describe the results of a pit bull attack. There are probably thousands of bites by small dogs for every bite by a bully breed.

Answer 5

I own one, I have 3 children and I couldn't ask for a better pet. He can take all the abuse my children dish out and some and never even thinks to bite or even act aggressive. He is from a reputable breeder and raise correctly, If your friend is raising the dog correctly and the dog is from a reputable breeder with good bloodlines then she has nothing to fear. I suggest you do a little research and maybe look for local breeders in your area to socialize yourself with the true Pit bulls that so many of us Pit lovers are fighting for the right to have. I have a family member who saw my dog and said "it's just a matter of time before he turns." that was 5 years ago. That same family member loves my dog now. He believed the Media till he actually met a well raised and breed one. now he is a firm believer in proper training and breeding.
Just educate yourself. and I do not mean that with any disrespect.

Answer 6

No they are not. When the media finds out about a dog attack and they find out that the dog had a square shaped head they immediately say its a pit bull there are many dogs who have the same head style as a pit bull.. I have one and he is the sweetest dog ever, i dont think ur overreacting . Just tell her to give them equal attention

Answer 7

The fact is that most Pitt Bulls are good with children and people in general. A hundred or so years ago, when there was a lot of development in the breed, any Pitt showing human aggression was put down immediately. If you look at the real statistics, German Shepherds are the number one biters in America, followed by Rottweilers, and then, sadly, PittBulls. Most of the Pitts that bite people are trained to do so or heavily neglected.

Pitts are safe around people as long as they are socialized and not neglected (as are most dogs) But their breed nature is NOT human aggession but canine aggression. Pitt bulls WILL kill other dogs if they get into a fight... as the saying goes, your Pitt Bull may never start a fight, but it will always finish one. 90+% of other dog breeds do not fight to the death as a rule. They fight until one submits... Pitts won't stop, the same is true when they attack people however. If the owner/handler is not around to stop the attack, the attack won't stop. The death rate of pitt bull attacks is higher than GSD's for this reason...

Answer 8

Pit bulls are the best people friendly dogs that I have ever been around.
Some people like to make them mean, which is a bad deal,
because they are so powerful.
I have 2 pit bulls, and my female LOVES children, the only problem is.... she licks them too much!!

Answer 9

any dog can be dangerous its how the dog is raised if its properly cared for and treated well then any dog will be a good pet if its beaten on of course it will rebell at one point pit bulls are mainly used as fighting dogs thats why you hear so much negative about them but i had a pit bull and raised it from a puppy and never had any concerns and i have three children the dog has since died but was a wonderfull pet because i raised him well

Answer 10

I have a beautiful pit bull that had been sadly mistreated in her previous life..................she has over the period of time that we have had become the dog she was meant to be which is soppy daft and very very gentle............I do not have little children but several friends come over that do have small ones and she will drop to a crouch postion and crawl alongside them, the ONLY thing we can think is that she does this so she is lower than the child and as such is not as intimdating to them..................
I would always watch ANY dog with a small child regardless of breed.

Poor owners make for poor dogs, but like anything else with time and effort you can end up with a great family pet.